


Wildflowers

by piedoesnotequalpi



Category: Parks and Recreation
Genre: Bisexual Ben Wyatt, F/M, Online Dating, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-26
Updated: 2020-04-26
Packaged: 2021-03-02 05:22:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 865
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23859766
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/piedoesnotequalpi/pseuds/piedoesnotequalpi
Summary: When Chris reminds Ben that boss/employee relationships are strictly forbidden, Ben signs up for a dating website to try to get over Leslie.
Relationships: Leslie Knope/Ben Wyatt
Comments: 2
Kudos: 63





	Wildflowers

**Author's Note:**

> I was rewatching Parks and Rec and at the end of the episode "Soulmates," I wondered whether Ben knew what he was doing when he suggested meeting in front of the wildflower mural. This story takes place right before/during that episode, and the final scene is pulled pretty much word-for-word from it.
> 
> Also Ben Wyatt is bi and you cannot convince me otherwise, so that came up.

“So, uh, Chris,” Ben said, “I was…uh, well, there’s this woman I was thinking of asking on a date, and…”

Chris jumped down from where he’d been doing inverted sit-ups. “That is _literally_ the most wonderful thing I’ve heard all day! I love dates! Tell me all about her. Is she a tall brunette? Where does she work? Where would you take her? I know this _great_ vegan restaurant that just opened up.”

“You’ve actually already met her. She, uh, works for the city government.” Ben paused, holding his breath.

“Ben! You know about my rule! How many times have I talked about the _unprofessional_ attitudes that come out of those kinds of situations!?” Chris started pacing around the room. “This is very upsetting. I think I need to do some push-ups.” He got down on the floor, tucking his tie into his shirt as he went.

Ben looked down at Chris. “Okay, I get it. I won’t ask her.” He sighed as he walked back to his desk.

“And don’t tell me who it is! I don’t even want to _know_ … _so_ unprofessional!” Chris shouted in between push-ups.

-

Ben scrolled through Google results—not Altavista, _never_ Altavista—for dating sites until he found one that looked promising. He sadly began typing information into hoosiermate.com.

“Favorite movie? _The Box_. Favorite book? _A Game of Thrones_ , of course. Favorite…” He continued down the list of questions, but Leslie’s face kept popping up in the back of his mind.

“Ben? You alright buddy?” Chris had apparently recovered from his earlier anger, and was now looking down at him concernedly.

“I…yeah. I’m fine.” Ben shrugged.

“I know my rule is frustrating sometimes. But employee-boss relationships are entirely inappropriate! You oversee every department! I’ll help you find someone who isn’t off limits.” Chris grinned. “I’m sure I know someone.”

“It’s fine, Chris. I’m actually setting up a dating profile right now.”

“Wonderful! Can I help?”

“I think I’m almost done anyway.” _And you wouldn’t know a piece of constructive criticism if it hit you in the face_. “You’re announcing the health initiative tomorrow, right?”

“Yes! I am _so_ excited about this. Maybe I’ll find some new running buddies!” Chris jogged off, leaving Ben to fill in the last section of his profile: what sort of qualities did he look for in a potential partner? He groaned, but started typing again, making sure to avoid anything that reminded him of Leslie. He clicked submit, and a few matches popped up. A picture of a tall man holding a model of the Starship Enterprise caught his eye, and he grinned as he clicked on the profile.

-

Ben logged into the dating website excitedly, hoping for a response from the guy he’d messaged yesterday. There was no message, but a notification popped up, obscuring most of the screen. “You have a 98% match!” the screen proclaimed. “This is a soulmate-level match!” He snorted as he took another sip of coffee, but clicked on the “view match” button anyway.

He nearly spat out his coffee.

Leslie’s face filled the screen. Her picture looked more like a professional headshot than something one would use for a dating profile, but somehow he found that even more endearing. He scrolled through her profile, laughing at some of the lines that had clearly been edited by Ann.

_My favorite place is the wildflower mural on the second floor of Pawnee City Hall, which is the greatest city hall in the best city in the world. I like to sit on the bench in front of it and just think sometimes. Or do work. But mostly the first thing._

Ben laughed to himself. Of course her favorite place was in City Hall. Chris’s ranting from yesterday still echoed in his head, but more softly now. There was nothing wrong with spending time with her outside of work, he decided. He couldn’t risk another scandal, but he figured he could cross that bridge if he got to it.

-

After Ron crushed Chris in the burger-off, Ben had a turkey burger shoved into his hands by Chris, who then immediately marched off, mumbling about clogged arteries and delicious beef. As Ben desperately tried to avoid thinking about what Tom had said about Leslie’s kissing abilities, Leslie walked over to him.

“Hey, what’s up?” she asked.

“Hey,” he responded. He looked down at his burger. “Well, I think I’m allergic to chutney. Also, what’s chutney?”

Leslie laughed. “No clue.” She paused. “Hey, I never got to tell you the rest of my ideas. Want to go somewhere and talk about them?”

“Yeah! Yeah, I’d love to.” Ben took a breath, trying to contain his excitement. “Just…let me get some actual food, and then…” The line from her dating profile popped into his head. “Do you know that wildflower mural up on the second floor?”

Leslie smiled at him. “Of course.”

“You want to meet there?”

Her smile grew. “Yeah.”

Ben quickly turned to go get one of Ron’s burgers before he said something awkward.

"Hey! You look happy." Chris was suddenly in front of him. "Did you find someone on that dating site already?"

"Something like that."

**Author's Note:**

> I have a tumblr with the same username. I post very irregularly and don't keep to a specific type of content at *all*, but feel free to interact with me there I guess?


End file.
